Dog Tags
by BrokenInfinty-City'sArmageddon
Summary: Yugi,Ryou,Jounouchi,Seto,Honda, and Marik are all going to a war. How will it change them? Can friendships last? Will they be able to survive? Better then it sounds, please please, PLEASE R&R if you don't like war THEN DON'T READ THIS COMPLETE
1. The Beginning Of It All

Author's Note: This is something I'm writing as I go along. If you like it, review it. The more reviews I get, the more often I update. Please review, I need something to look forward too in this madness called school.  
  
Also, I am going to give Jou his NJ accent even though I'm using Japanese names. I honestly really love his dubbed voice. ((WOW, they did something RIGHT.))  
  
'thought'  
  
"speech"  
  
*Time switch or character switch*  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Excitedly Jounouchi Katsuya packed a small amount of things in a bag. 'I get to go!' he thought. 'I'm going to war. No more dad, no more school, I get to fight like a man.for my country!' He dashed out the door, so happy about leaving he could've exploded had he been capable. Hailing a cab, he was on his way to the military base where he would be shipped off.  
  
But the people he met at the Base were the least he'd ever expected to find. "What the.?" slowly he approached a smaller boy with multi colored hair from behind. "Yugi?" he tapped the boy on the shoulder, sure enough it was him. A few more familiar faces turned in his direction at the sound of a familiar voice.  
  
Honda, Ryou, Marik, and Kaiba turned around and noticed him for the first time in quite awhile. Yugi's face was tear streaked, Ryou and Honda looked as though they had been in the middle of a deep conversation, Marik stood looking sadly out the small window, and Kaiba just stood there. He did not look smug and confident anymore but he gave Jounouchi one of the most blank stares he had seen in while, it was almost sad in a way.  
  
"Jounouchi!" Yugi cried while running forth from the crowed as he hugged one of his best friends, he began crying all over again. Jou was confused. 'Why are all these guys here? I mean, I knew that there was a draft going around with this new war but I never thought.my friends would get pulled in.' This war had a new meaning for Jou now. He knew that his life might be in danger, but now his friends as well? And they probably wouldn't get stationed together either.  
  
Yugi pulled back. "S-Sorry." he shivered as his tears sub sided. "I'm just so scared...I hate war, I hate fighting.but I don't have much of a choice do I?" Jou's heart sunk at least twenty levels under ground. He had been looking forward to this ever since he found out he'd been drafted.he never thought that he'd have to worry about his friends.  
  
"Suck it up Yugi." Kaiba said pointedly as he glared at no one in particular. "You're not the only one risking something here." subconsciously, his hand grasped the locket he still wore around his neck.  
  
He observed quietly as the people he knew stood there not knowing what to expect. As usual, the mutt was excited and looked at it as a game.in a way it was a game, but it was so much more then that. Yugi.a great duelist yes but he was still very much a child, he would not be able to handle this war, Kaiba knew he had a small chance of surviving. Honda seemed to share the mutt's view of things, a game. A game with fighting and weapons, just like one of the video games the two of them had spent hours slaving over. But here there were no extra lives and no restart button. The Egyptian, Marik, and Ryou were talking quietly. They knew it was no game, no laughing matter but they still had no idea what they were in for.  
  
But he knew. Seto Kaiba knew exactly what to expect. Though he had been young, he still remembered.his father had been in a war, the Vietnam war. Not Gozaburo, not that sick twisted bastard, but his FATHER had gone to that terrible, terrible war. And though Seto was barley even five or six, he remembered plain as day what his father had said to him. A few days before his father had died, he told his son, his boy all the terrible thing that he had seen, heard, felt.his father knew Seto was young, but he could handle it. Besides, he had to know in case a situation like this should ever arise.  
  
"Alright!" a loud booming voice sounded from the front of the room, demanding attention. "You will be shipped to various battle sites selected by us. You are to respect and obey those in ranks above you, make yourselves worth while and perhaps you might rise above the rest of the people here." The man paused in his speech and glanced around the room seeming to have the ability to sniff out weakness. Yugi shuddered involuntarily when the man's gaze fell up on him. "Now, here are your uniforms and dog tags."  
  
As everyone went off to change, Jou looked at himself in the reflection in a window. He saw the old imitation dog tag he'd been wearing for as long as he could remember. Carefully, he tucked it under his uniform shirt and left the new official one be seen visibly.  
  
In another room, Ryou talked solemnly to Marik. "I just hope we can all make it through this." he stated half-heartedly.  
  
"Yea.it's all just so unpredictable.we've just got to take things as we come I guess." Marik sighed straightening his uniform. It felt heavy and confining compared to the light Egyptian clothes he typically wore. He sighed sadly, if someone could just at least give him a heads up on what to expect it would've been helpful.  
  
Ryou subconsciously bit his lower lip. "I'm worried about Yugi." in truth that was an understatement; he was terrified for Yugi. "It's just that.mentally he's still so young. There is so much he'll see and learn all at once.it's mind boggling how quickly he'll have to grow up." Marik nodded sadly in agreement. They only hoped that at least SOMEONE from the group would be able to remain with Yugi through this whole thing.  
  
Honda was still very excited about this whole thing. He didn't seem to be affected by the fact that so much of his life was in danger of disappearing around him.and that's if he didn't loose his own life first. Maybe he just didn't notice the reality of the situation. Maybe, he didn't want to notice.  
  
And Seto Kaiba, the one who had supposedly known everything was now full of doubts. But he would stay strong, he must prevail as he did with everything. For some reason, it seemed that he make it through this war. Not only for Mokuba, but in honor of his father. 'Nothing has stopped me before' he thought as he glared at his reflection in the same window where Jounouchi was also looking at his own image 'It won't let anything stop me now either. I will win.'  
  
"Well Kaiba." Jounouchi turned to face Seto "I guess dis is da true test now, huh?" But Seto simply glared at him.  
  
"You see this as a game.like you look at everything else so simple mindedly. I just hope you figure out how serious this situation really is before it's too late for you."  
  
The booming voice sounded from the front of the room again. "Alright, and now we will list the groups you've been put in." A nervous glance exchanged between everyone but Seto. Now they could only hope that would happen next would fall into their favor.  
  
END CHAPTER ONE  
  
A/N: Ok, if you want me to keep this going, lemme know by reviewing. I know this chapter focused mainly on Seto and Jou, but that will change, it will probably rotate around with people in each chapter. 


	2. It all Seemed So Simple At The Time

A/N: OK, muh ha ha. Thank you to all reviewers. Continue to review and recommend this story to others for faster, future updates. This is only the very beginning.  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Rather then list all of the names of those drafted within the city I will instead list who is with who. Jounouchi and Seto were in the same squad, Honda was with Marik, and, luckily, Ryou would be with Yugi... for a little while at least. We will also skip over basic training, as that is irrelevant to this tale.  
  
Ryou sighed heavily while throwing his gun down onto the bed. They had been shipped out to their squadron's location that day. Yugi had done quiet well in basic training, he was skilled with the aim of a bullet and was in top physical condition. Ryou hadn't done so badly himself though he was still very worried about the rest of the group.  
  
"Today's the day, Yugi, our first battle," Ryou gave a weak smile. Yugi nodded distantly. 'I know I can shoot it. I know how to aim, I've been trained to kill, I know how.' Yugi paused in his thought. 'I definitely CAN, the question is, WILL I?' Ryou walked up to him and patted him lightly on the shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll be fine, so will the others, I'm sure of it." Yugi returned the slight smile, but in his heart he knew that he would not be able to fight.  
  
Honda flopped onto his cot with a huge grin on his face about three hundred miles away from Ryou and Yugi. "Marik, this is gonna be GREAT!" Marik too was smiling as he lay staring up at the top of the tent. He knew that even though so much was at stake, that didn't mean he couldn't enjoy himself, right? But something was still nagging him.  
  
"I just hope everybody else gets out of here." Marik said blankly  
  
Honda tried averting the subject away from their friends.  
  
"C'mon, don't worry about them they'll be fine. Plus, today we actually get to fight! We'll show these idiots whose boss. I mean no one messes with us and gets away with it!" He struck a joking battle pose and he and Marik laughed lightly. It didn't seem SO bad here.  
  
And about two hundred miles South of Marik and Honda, Jounouchi Katsuya and Seto Kaiba had just arrived at their positions as well. Jou jumped around excitedly. "Yes, yes, yes! Now we get to turn mentally deranged, cover the walls in perverted calendars and pictures, and listen to weird war music late into the night!!!" Seto grabbed his shirt collar.  
  
"We haven't got TIME for that you idiot! And besides, where do you plan on getting all of that anyway?"  
  
"Well, I don't know about the music but," Jou grinned evilly and pulled his bag which was stuffed full of.interesting photographs and magazine cutouts.  
  
"Oh, good GOD, Mutt, give me that!" He snatched the bag and threw it into another near by tent.  
  
"HEY!!! Whyd you go and do that?"  
  
"If we're caught with any of that we'll be more busted then you've ever been before. Trust me, you do NOT want to be a troublemaker in this place." Jounouchi muttered in annoyance. 'Stupid Kaiba.I hate him, if only I had gotten to go with Yugi or Honda." his thought was paused when Seto suddenly had his gun out and was aiming at something outside.  
  
"Okay, what are ya doin NOW!?"  
  
"Shhh! Something is out there." Seto continued aiming out something shifting in the surrounding woods when suddenly another group of people from their own army walked into the clearing. Seto angrily threw his gun down as Jounouchi laughed hysterically.  
  
"HA!!! Looks like SOMEBODY'S paranoid." Jou said as his laughter subsided  
  
"Shut up Mutt." he muttered. The voice of their sergeant called from out side. The two emerged from the tent and so did a few others from surrounding tents. "Our mission begins tomorrow. Keep a sharp eye; these jungles are loaded with enemy trap. You must be able to watch everything at all angles, fail and you will surely die. Good Luck soldiers!" They saluted their sergeant. Tomorrow was the beginning for them, but the beginning was even closer for those several hundred miles away.  
  
END CHAPTER TWO  
  
A/N: Muh ha ha, review and be rewarded with the next chapter! 


	3. Last Rays Of Sun

A/N: Thank u for all who reviewed. Even though I'm updating on the 12th this was written on the 11th. Please take a moment to remember those lost on that day two years ago; if are not American, remember that that affected the entire world, it was not only American's that died. Once again, thank you to all reviewers.  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Ryou didn't have time to aim carefully; he was firing in random directions, and was being either very skillful at it or very lucky. Ryou did not like the killing, no he was not enjoying this one bit but it had to be done, it was his mission now. Yugi, however, was an entirely different matter.  
  
He wasn't even moving or trying to defend himself, he just stood there motionless. Welcoming death, possibly. Yugi was human, he feared death as much as the next man but the thing he feared more then death was killing. 'I've got to get him to move!' Ryou thought as he continued firing randomly. 'I have to get him out of there!' Taking a risk, Ryou jumped onto Yugi pushing him to the ground.  
  
"Yugi, you have to get out of here now!" Ryou looked around nervously, luckily they were protected by a wall of other humans. "You need to crawl back towards the camp, don't get yourself trampled, now get out of here before you end up dead!"  
  
"But, Ryou, how will I-" Yugi began to ask.  
  
"There's no time, if you want to live, go!" Ryou stood up again and headed towards the front of the group. Yugi, taking his advice began to wiggle on the grounds towards the direction of the hidden camp.  
  
He sighed sadly as he had finally made a good enough distance between himself and the raging battle. "I shouldn't be here." he said aloud to no one. "I don't belong here with all of this fighting and killing.it's not right. It's only been one battle and I've seen enough..to.to." he broke down sobbing and could no longer stand straight and fell into a shaking heap on the side of the road.  
  
'I heard that man talking in the tent next to mine and Ryou's last night." he thought bitterly as the tears continued. 'He had a family, people who cared, and depended on him. He had kids, a wife, a sick parent living with him.' he shuddered. 'And I saw him die today! He's gone, along with so many others.how many children don't' have fathers anymore? How many wives are widows? How many parents childless?'  
  
He cried for a long while there in the isolated quiet. How long he was there, he didn't know. Yugi stood up and wiped the last tear remaining on his cheek away. Hearing footsteps behind him, he whirled around. Crying was the last thing he wanted to be found doing in this place.he knew it would not be pretty if the Sergeant or Lieutenant were to find him here.  
  
He was very relieved when Ryou stalked out from the shadows. "Ryou." Yugi breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God it's just you." Ryou continued striding toward him, a concerned yet determined and serious look in his eye. He tightly gripped Yugi's shoulders, attempting to tell him something but Yugi beat him to speech with a small gasp. "Ryou, what happened here?" there was a large, bloody gash across Ryou's already very pale face.  
  
"War, Yugi. War is what happened. It can't be avoided unless you have the courage to avoid it."  
  
"Ryou, what are you talking about? I-" Ryou cut off further speech with a small shake.  
  
"Yugi, take my advice and run. Get out of here while you still can and do it before the rest of the troops catch up with me. There should be an airport that is still running about fifty miles north," Ryou pointed in the direction of North. "try and get back home from there. Now go."  
  
Yugi nodded numbly, not quiet having taken in all of what Ryou had just said. But he trusted him and so he obeyed. "Wait! Give me your dog tag," Ryou removed the tag from around Yugi's neck and watched him scramble through the jungle towards what was hopefully home. 'Good Luck Yugi.I hope you make it back." Ryou looked sadly at the last rays of sunlight cutting through the darkness. 'Because right now I have a sinking feeling that I might not make it here.and I don't think I'm brave enough to leave like you did."  
  
He clutched Yugi's dog tag in his fist and let a tear fall down his cheek. Hearing his Sergent's voice from behind him, he walked up to him, saluting with one hand and holding out Yugi's dog tag in the other. "Sir! I would like report someone Missing In Action."  
  
END CHAPTER THREE  
  
A/N: Ok, that chapter obviously focused around Yugi and Ryou, the chapter will rotate between the groups. Sorry this was so short.  
  
Also, Yugi will come back into this plot line; I'm not through with him yet. 


	4. Rising Through The Ranks

Authoress' Annoyance: Ok, people, look, I keep getting reviews ((I deleted them because they were anonymous)) telling me about how serious war is, how bad, etc. PEOPLE THIS IS A FANFIC FOR GODSAKE!!! I AM WELL AWARE OF THE SERIOUSNESS OF WAR AND I WILL CONTINUE WRITING THIS WHETHER YOU THINK I SHOULD OR NOT. If you don't like war, then don't read this goddamned fic! *clears throat* Now onto lighter note.  
  
A/N: Muh ha ha, you have reviewed and have been rewarded! This next chapter will focus around Honda and Marik, next will be Seto and Jounouchi. That will be the order of the chapters from now on but do not skip over certain chapters as events in one area may correspond to events in another. Please continue spreading the word about this is story, And thank you for reviewing!  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Honda crouched lowly in the bushes concealing himself, Marik, and a few others. Even more soldiers had been positioned around the area hidden in other bushes and trees. They patiently awaited their prey, the enemy, to emerge into the area; much like a cat waiting for the mouse to leave it's hole.  
  
Like everyone else, Honda had had his gun aimed and ready to fire at any given time. But soon, he grew tired and assuming that the enemy would not arrive for a while longer, he set his gun down and stretched tiredly. Marik elbowed him hard in the stomach. "What the HELL do you think you're doing?" he whispered, softly but demandingly.  
  
"Taking a break, duh," Honda replied smartly.  
  
"We can't afford breaks, do you want to survive or not!? Now get up, and keep your focus on your weapon and the enemy." Marik said as he continued to stare wit ha piercing gaze outside the bushes waiting for the arrival of the enemy. Honda grumbled before taking Marik's advice and getting back into the ready position. 'He sure is on edge.' he thought to himself.  
  
Silently, the Lieutenant observed quietly at Marik's behavior. 'Hmmm...he would do well in a higher rank. Perhapes I will keep a closer eye on him and see if he is worth moving forward.' He paused and subconsciously glared in Honda's direction 'That one however is going to be a problem.he is lazy, he'll slow us down.' He smirked silently 'That will change soon, soon they will all learn how to survive here..some harder then others..'  
  
"Here they are!" Marik mouthed excitedly to Honda. Honda yawned, this whole business of waiting quietly was very boring, he wanted some action already! 'Alright, finally.' But something went wrong, the men on the other side fired before the enemy had gotten to the correct spot. The enemy began to flee in the direction they had come and the bullets kept going, forward and forward. Some only hit wood, but others.  
  
Marik had been paying attention, dropped totally to the ground and was missed completely. However, Honda, who had been in mid-yawn, was not so lucky.  
  
"HONDA!" Marik screeched as his friend fell backward onto the underbrush along with a few other men surrounding them. "Oh God damnit, I told you to pay attention, Honda, you idiot!" Marik knew his screaming would do no good, but it was all he could think to do.  
  
'Perfect, let's test his abilities.' the Lieutenant thought as he conveniently disappeared in the shadows.  
  
Marik looked around and seeing no one in authority, he took charge of the situation. "ALL OF YOU THAT CAN HEAR, ME GET OVER HERE NOW!" As a few men appeared from around the clearing he proceeded to give orders. "Help me get these men back to the base, they need medical attention quickly, if we don't move fast, the enemy will circle around and cut us off, we'll be slow and out numbered." A few blank faces stared at him confused. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! I SAID LET'S GO, MOVE IT OUT!!!"  
  
The men and one woman scrambled about helping each other to move the wounded. "Alright, let's get moving, we have to get out of here and move fast ,we can't take the direct route back to base, the enemy will be waiting for use by now. We have to go the long way and do so quickly if we don't want to loose these men. Let's move!" Marik lead the group jogging off in the chosen direction. The observing Lieutenant followed from the very back, going unnoticed. 'Well done Ishtar, I can see that you will move quickly through our ranks.this test proves it.' He thought.  
  
As they finally reached their secluded and hidden camp, Marik ordered that the wounded be put onto cots and have their bleeding cared for by those who volunteered. He ordered the rest to radio in helicopters to transport the seriously injured to medical facilities.  
  
A few moments later, the sound of three lowering choppers could be heard. Marik shivered; he did NOT like that sound. Six injured men, two to one helicopter. "You'll be back soon enough Honda!" Marik screamed over the top of the sound as Honda was carefully placed inside the chopper. "Then you'll get to fight!" He watched as the three choppers rose into the air and that terrible sound finally left along this them.  
  
The Egyptian sighed as slumped against a tree. "Ishtar!" a voice called from behind him. Marik whirled around, straightened and saluted his Lieutenant and sergeant.  
  
"Sir, yes Sir!" he responded.  
  
"The two of us have been talking." the Lieutenant spoke. "Would you be interested in becoming a sergeant? Sergeant Beck will be moved to a new location soon and considering your actions today we think you are the right man to replace him."  
  
"Sir, yes sir! It would be an honor sir!" he said still saluting; Marik couldn't help but grin.  
  
"Good then, I'll radio in the homeland and have the proper badge and uniform shipped out." The Lieutenant and Sergeant returned his salute and kept walking. Marik returned to his normal position and smiled. 'Looks like you being an idiot was actually quite helpful today Honda.' internally, he laughed knowing that Honda would be jealous beyond belief when he returned from the medical facility.  
  
END CHAPTER FOUR  
  
A/N: I originally had planned not to update just yet but I got a particularly compelling review. ((Thank you SO much Penny.)) And I decided to put it up tonight. This chapter is nowhere near as meaningful as the previous one but like I said, we're still at the very beginning of this whole escapade. 


	5. Traps

A/N: Mwa, school is evil. I am going to try and update a few times a week, probably once a day or every other day. *explodes* Damn this is annoying, I'm not sure hwy I wanted to put this note here, oh well. Once again I am well aware of the seriousness of war I do not need flames reminding me of something I know all too well. Flames will be used to burn Pegasus' Funny Bunny plushies and once those are gone, Pegasus himself. The flames don't bother me, flaming me is pointless. Thought u oughtta know.  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Seto sighed lazily as he stood staring up at the night sky. "Private!" came a call from behind him.  
  
"Yes Sergeant?" he answered swiftly with a salute.  
  
"Get into your quarters, you need rest for tomorrow's mission!"  
  
"Yes Sir!" he strode swiftly into the tent that he and Katsuya occupied. Katsuya glared at him, neither of them were happy out the sleeping arrangements. "What are you looking at, Mutt?" Seto scoffed.  
  
"I was just admirin' da wonderful white colorin of da tent.You idiot, I'm lookin at you! Da whole time we've been ere, ya've done nothin but complain ta me and stare at da sky, I'm getting sick of it."  
  
"Deal with it." Seto responded dully. For the first time in his life, Katsuya witnessed Seto Kaiba without his fighting spirit. 'Well dis sure ain't normal.' he thought to himself.  
  
"You wanna tell me what's on your mind?" Jou offered quietly.  
  
"No." came the immediate response. Jounouchi couldn't see Seto's face, for he was lying facing away from him but his voice had actually wavered for a moment.almost as if he were. 'Cryin? Nah, not him.could he?' Jou wondered silently to himself before decided it was probably something he had imaginged.  
  
"Whateva." Jou extinguished the small light inside the tent, curled up in the thin blanket he had, and fell asleep.  
  
*the next morning*  
  
Seto and Jounouchi emerged from their tent before dawn, as did everyone else within the area. The Sergeant explained to them that for right now they would not be fighting, they just had to move to a new location a few hundred miles away. If they moved quickly, they could make it in two days because the group was a small one. But there was still the problem of the enemy traps in the jungles that lay ahead.  
  
Creeping silently along, Seto's ice-cold eyes scanned his perimeter searching for anything out of the ordinary. A tiny, nearly invisible string laid across the way he was walking, a clump of dirt, an odd place in the soil, ANYTHING that might suggest a deadly trap.  
  
Jounouchi was attempting to imitate Seto. 'I hate to admit it.' he thought to himself. 'But Kaiba knows what he's doing.' Suddenly while Jou was spacing out thinking about this he felt a TINY pressure on his right shin. He looked down and to his horror, he discovered that he was pressed up against one of those tiny strings, if he moved, he would be blown up it was only a matter of how long he could stand there.  
  
Hearing a small whimper, Seto turning around too see the dilemma Jounouchi had gotten himself into. "Oh dear God." he muttered to himself. He approached Jounouchi, cautiously and followed the string to a small metal box hidden in the underbrush. Carefully as he could, he worked for a few moments until he was certain it was disarmed. "You can move again" he said frankly to Jounouchi before jogging to catch up with the rest of the group.  
  
Katsuya blinked a few times and once he had recovered from the shock, he too was running to catch up with them.  
  
*a few nights later*  
  
Jou had learned from his mistake and did not have any other problems on their journey; it was only a few more miles until they would link up with the squadron that had requested assistance due to the loss of six men.  
  
Once again laying in a tent, Jounouchi laughed lightly. "Wouldn't it be funny if Honda, Ryou, Yugi, or Marik were in the group we were meeting up with?" he wondered allowed.  
  
"The chances of that are slim.and even if it were to be that particular group, some of them have already been to battle, and I wouldn't count on seeing Yugi again after that." Seto scoffed.  
  
"Don't you even THINK dat Kaiba." Jounouchi said louder then he had ment too. He stopped for a moment and softened his voice. "A few days back, when I ran into dat wire well.tanks." he said.  
  
"Don't look at it as a favor, Mutt. I only did so that YOUR mistake wouldn't cause an explosion exposing the rest of us." Seto said coldly.  
  
"Remind me to never thank you again.for anything. God, ya just WON'T let up, will you? I mean, I can't even thank you for savin my life without some kinda wise crack outta you! Ya know what? Just forget it." Angrily, Jounouchi rolled over and faced the white, cloth wall of the tent.  
  
"You don't understand." Seto muttered more to himself then anyone else. "No one does." Jou's ears perked up.  
  
"How CAN anyone understand? You act so cold and cruel, you don't give anyone a CHANCE to understand, ya idiot!"  
  
"Well maybe that's because I've got the decency to keep my problems out of other people's lives." Seto spat back at him.  
  
"No ya don't, if you'd just let someone help you fix them, then ya wouldn't be there no more and ya wouldn't be botherin my friends and I all the time with your attitude!" Jounouchi was getting upset, of course this happened often but there was something about Seto Kaiba that set him off easier then most people.  
  
"I don't need to be told what to do with MY life." Seto said as he glared at the whiteness of the tent. ".and I am sick of the color white." And with that he turned out the light plunging the two of them into darkness.  
  
END CHAPTER FIVE  
  
A/N: OK, I know that was fairly pointless an uneventful but these chapters are necessary. Trust me, with the next Marik/Honda chapter you'll all receive a surprise if you haven't already figured it out due to the huge hints in this chapter. 


	6. Eyes Watching Skies Falling

A/N: Not much to add except...I HATE HOMEWORK!!! GAH!!! *stabs her report* Oh well, now that that's been said.  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Ryou sat quietly, late at night in his tent writing slowly and carefully on a bit of paper. He knew that he had to tell Jounouchi, he was Yugi's best friend, he had to know about it. 'But how can I tell him without telling him?' Ryou thought as he impatiently tapped his pencil on the paper. 'He needs to know, but what if the letter is intercepted? They think Yugi is M.I.A., what if they find out he deserted?' He sighed heavily and spoke aloud to himself. "There HAS to be an easier way to do this." Wearily, he re-read for the 1000th time that night what he had written:  
  
Dear Jounouchi,  
  
'Well, you have to start somewhere I suppose.' he thought. 'I'm just going to have to put this simply.' he continued writing:  
  
I cannot tell you everything now. Yugi is not dead nor is he wounded however he is not safe yet either. His future is uncertain; I will explain the next time I see you.  
  
Signed,  
  
Ryou  
  
Sighing once again, he put his pencil down. 'It's the best I can do for now.' He lay there, staring at the top of his tent. If only the spirit of the millennium ring were still with him ((A/N: I decided to have Marik be the only yami only because it was my preference and I think it will make for a better plot line)), he would surely know what to do in a situation like this.meaning in a war. 'But he isn't here, so I'll have to make due by myself.' Ryou thought more confidently then he had felt in a week.  
  
His situation had been quiet.too quiet almost.  
  
*Yugi*  
  
Yugi stumbled; tripping as he passed the same spot for the forth time that week. 'I should've been there by now, I know it.' He thought as he slumped, out of breath, against a tree. 'I've been going in circles, I can tell.oh no.' he looked down on the ground and picked up a button, the same button that had fallen off his uniform a few days back.  
  
He wanted to cry. He wanted to be home, hell, anywhere else then here would be better. "If only I had someone here with me." he said aloud bitterly. "I don't even know if everyone is still alive now." Hearing something shift in the bushes he bolted up and began running off in a direction he hoped was North (which was where he was ment to be heading). He was completely sure that someone or something had been following him for the past few nights.  
  
'Maybe I'm just going crazy.it's happened before, infact I heard its' quiet common in war-' he stopped his own thought. 'NO! No, I'm not crazy I know that something is after me.maybe it's one of the enemy? Whatever it is, I have to stay ahead no matter what. If it gets to me, before I get to the air port Ryou mentioned then I don't know what'll happen to me!' He slowed down his running, fairly sure that he had lost what ever was following him.  
  
*Unknown*  
  
A pair of dark eyes watched the small boy slow in his running and regain his proper breathing pace. 'He's running.he's afraid.Why?' the eyes thought. 'I must keep watching him, he can't know I'm here just yet, but eventually once I decide what to do with him.' The eyes ended their thought and faded to black.  
  
*Ryou*  
  
'I know something is going on where Marik is.' He thought trying to distract himself from thoughts of Yugi. 'I felt it a while ago.' Ryou wasn't exactly psychic nor did he have ESP with anyone but Bakura, however he was very in tune with the emotions of his friends. He had felt it, a great out burst of anger then so much joy. 'I hate being so far from everyone. I have no idea what's going on. How long will this war last I wonder?' Suddenly a thought occurred to him. 'and what if someone accepts a position above Sergeant? The government will then be allowed to draft them back into the army anytime they please!'  
  
Letting out a small moan of anguish, he rolled over on his cot desiring sleep more then he ever had in his life. But unfortunately for poor Ryou, sleep did not grant him with it's presence for many hours to come.  
  
*Yugi*  
  
He found a suitable spot on the ground and curled up tightly. It was dark now; and no place is safe after dark when in a war. Shivering slightly, he stared up at a tiny patch of stars through the think trees. 'Now there's something I haven't seen in awhile.' he thought in reference to the sky. 'I'll bet that someone I know is looking up at this same sky.' He thought as he smiled a tiny bit for the first time since he had left basic training. "I'm not alone.not as long as I can see the sky." He said aloud.  
  
*Unknown*  
  
The pairs of eyes observed again. 'No, you definitely aren't alone right now. But I still don't know what I'm going to do about you.I can't just have you wandering around here aimlessly.' the eyes ceased thought and watched as Yugi rolled over and closed his eyes, an innocent and peaceful smile playing on his lips. The eyes for the first time in this entire war softened. 'You don't belong here. Don't worry, I'll try my best to get you out.' Having decided what the eyes were going to do about Yugi, they once again faded into blackness.  
  
END CHAPTER SIX  
  
A/N: Sorry this is so short, blame my damned school. Also, I'll be gone Friday, Saturday and the earliest I'll be updating is either tomorrow, Sunday, or both if I find the time. Sorry once again about the shortness of this chapter.. 


	7. Days Dawn Upon Tears

A/N: Well, I won't be updating tomorrow or Saturday So...yea, here's the last update before I go away for the weekend unwillingly. *sigh*  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Katsuya Jounouchi awoke earlier then he had ment too..A lot earlier. Realizing that he couldn't go back to sleep, he stood up and without turning on the lantern so as to not wake up Seto, he exited the tent. Stretching and yawning in the minimal amount of light in the pre-dawn, he ran into someone.  
  
"Oof.watch it mutt." he heard a familiar voice mutter half heartedly.  
  
"Kaiba?! Why are ya out ere so early? We don't gotta be up for another few hours," Jou questioned.  
  
"I couldn't sleep." Jounouchi twitched internally. There was no mocking tone I Kaiba's voice, no insult, no sarcasm, no nothing. This was certainly abnormal. Seto then muttered something that Jounouchi couldn't understand.  
  
"Uh.Sorry, what'd ya just say?" he asked.  
  
"I said that I don't think you'd be able to sleep either if all you could remember was your little brother dying in your arms!" Seto half yelled, his anger flaring unusually easy. Jounouchi blinked. 'Did I hear him right?' he wondered. It took a few more moments before Seto's words totally sunk into his mind.  
  
"Mokuba is....gone?" Jou said still rather shocked. Kaiba took a shaky breath in an attempt to prevent much more emotion, even if it was only anger, from showing.  
  
"Yes. He is."  
  
"How long ago did it happen.?"Jou asked.  
  
"A few days before the draft started.I-I.I still don't even know what happened. That night...I walked home, I was pretty tired from putting in extra hours. I came into the kitchen to get myself some water after walking and it was then that out of the corner of my eye, I saw something that hadn't been there before. It was a tiny drop of blood..v-very small but I knew something had to be wrong. I ran into the next room and saw-" he stopped and took a deep breath. "I can't finish.they don't know if it was murder or suicide but I left for this war before the investigation was even complete."  
  
Jounouchi was completely lost for words. He knew that Mokuba was the only thing Kaiba had left and he was just.gone. It seemed so strange and the thought of someone as young as Mokuba committing suicide was a thought even Jou couldn't bear; and it wasn't even his brother.  
  
"I have nothing left, there is nowhere else to go. So I came here, I came to the war. Maybe if I'm lucky I'll die here but knowing me..oh no, I won't fail because I never fail at anything." He seemed to mock himself as he spoke. "Sure, I'll end up being a great war hero with tons of medals and achievements and for what? Nothing. No one will be there, no one will care. My life is doomed to drag on in this lonely pointless existence. I succeed at everything I try at and maybe that is why no one is around me; I don't even bother with people anymore unless I have to." He paused thoughtfully and stared at the ground, Jounouchi's slightly smaller silhouette stood next to his in the dim light.  
  
"And the thing of it is." he looked up at Jou for the first time the entire conversation. "What if it was a suicide.? A suicide that was provoked by something _I_ had done." Unable to stand it any longer, Seto Kaiba fell to his knees in the black dirt below their feet, his shoulders shaking in silent tears. Slowly, Jounouchi put his hand on Seto's shoulder. The two stayed like that for quite sometime until Seto finally stood up laughing bitterly and softly.  
  
"You know." he said the bitter, cold laughter still in slight control. "I really hate you right now, you and your friends, seeing as I know they would be just as caring as you were in this situation, are the first people other then Mokuba to actually..care." he paused, the low cold laughter ceasing. "And I don't think I'm ready for that just yet." Turning away from Jounouchi in the growing light, he disappeared into the jungle.  
  
*half a day later*  
  
The next time Jou saw Seto, the two of them acted as though that morning had never happened. Walking quickly and purposefully, themselves and four others from their squad reached the destination after nearly five days of traveling by foot. What they expected was quite different from what they saw.  
  
"Marik?! Is that you?" Jou asked wide eyed staring at his new sergeant.  
  
"Yes, PRIVATE," he put special emphasis on that word. "Jounouchi, I AM Marik. However, you will now be referring to me as Sir, is that clear." Jou nodded glumly and muttered under his breath. 'Damn, I didn't think he'd change so fast.and when did he become a Sergeant anyway?' he thought. "Jounouchi, Kaiba, I request your presence in my quarters." He nodded his head in the direction of a larger tent then most. "As for the rest of you, get situated for tomorrow's mission!"  
  
They followed Marik into his tent where his stone faced changed to an expression of joy. "Sorry about that back there, I have to act like that to everyone other wise I could loose my position.but it's wonderful to see a couple of familiar faces around here." He said smiling. Jou smiled back, Seto just stared. "Oh, and before I forget, there is a letter here for you Jounouchi." he handed Jou a small envelope.  
  
Eagerly, he torn it open and read Ryou's short message. He knew right then and there that something was very wrong. "Sometin' happened ta Yug." he said looking up into Marik's amethyst eyes. An eerie silence crept over the campsite........  
  
END CHAPTER SEVEN  
  
A/N: Well..here ya go. lol 


	8. Bloody Footprints

A/N: Yes, I know I told you I would update Sunday and I know that it's now Tuesday..actually it's Wednesday for some of my readers. Anyway, Sorry about the delay I sorta died temporarily. This chapter will be a little of the pattern, everyone is in it..except the Unknown, that comes later.  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Jounouchi handed the letter over to Marik who read it, then handed it over to Kaiba. Seto had to almost stifle a laugh, he was right about Yugi and he knew it. Managing to keep his usual stone face he looked up at Marik. "Well..this is certainly an interesting predicament." He said blankly.  
  
Jou wanted to hit him. 'God Damn him, he'd probably be laughing right now if I wasn't sittin' right here..' Also managing to contain himself, Jou looked up at Marik. "Well, what are we gonna do?"  
  
"I have absolutely no idea." Marik stared at him. "It's not like there's anything we CAN do.considering we have no idea where he is and I think if Ryou didn't send all of the information, there must be a good reason. Eventually we'll run into him and find out, I'll make sure of it." His eyes flashed.  
  
At the oddest of times, the sound of an approaching helicopter could be heard. "Oh!" Marik exclaimed slightly taken aback by the sound. "That should be one of the returned men from the incident a few weeks ago. Your troop will still have to stay here, they still aren't allow to fight just yet.C'mon, let's go see if it's Honda."  
  
The three of them made their way out of the tent and looked up into the sky at the black mechanism lowering towards them. Marik shivered, he still didn't like that sound. Immediately, someone jumped from the doorless chopper and stumbled clutching their chest, obviously over excerpting themselves believing that their wound had totally healed. "Yep.dat's Honda," Jou said sighing knowing how arrogant his friend could sometimes be.  
  
Marik was the one to run up to him in order to explain his new position as Sergeant. The two soon began arguing; Marik saying he'd gotten there himself and Honda saying it was partially his doing because he was the one shot. A weak defense yes, but then again this IS Honda we're talking about.  
  
Seto looked over at Jou and noticed that he was wearing two dog tags. "You're not still wearing this, are you?" he said reaching for the supposedly fake tag Jou had always worn. Taking a step back, Jounouchi became defensive.  
  
"Ey, don't touch dat!" he exclaimed.  
  
"What's the big deal?" Seto asked with a raised eyebrow.  
  
"It was my dad's." Jou said lowly as he stared at the ground.  
  
"You too, huh?" Seto said. Katsuya looked up at him in a confused manner. Slowly, Seto reached under his shirt and removed two dog tags; his own and his father's.  
  
"YA never told me dat-" Jou began but Seto cut him off.  
  
"You didn't need to know before now." Seto said before walking away, not wanting to deal with Honda and his gloating of recovering from his nearly fatal wound. Jounouchi sighed. 'I am neva gonna understand dat guy.' He thought as he ran to greet Honda.  
  
*Ryou*  
  
Ryou lay sleeping in his tent in the early hours of the day. He had been very glad when he was finally allowed to sleep, for though nothing in his area had happened, he still had to patrol the area at odd hours of the night. Suddenly a screaming alarm brought him flying from his cot in a paniced state. Having fallen asleep in his uniform, he dashed out of the tent ready for whatever had caused the disturbance.  
  
He was immediately sent into a world of chaos. People were running in all different directions as explosions set off all around him and the sky light up orange in some places. Falling to the ground, he began to crawl, trying not to be trampled. He had to reach some sort of trench or something with these bombs being set off but it was a futile attempt. He was stepped on almost instantly and was almost unable to get up afterward. Once he was up however, an odd sort of instinct took over him.  
  
He readied his sniping gun, the one he had been keeping by his bedside each night, and let his body take control. 'Run' was the first thing that came into his mind, and he did run. Swiftly and stealthily, he dashed into a deeper part of the jungle. He backed against a tree and aimed his gun, his eyes moving slowly around his area. 'Someone had to be here to plant and set off those explosives.' he deducted. 'They must still be in close proximity, I can't let them escape.' He darted off into the darkness determined to catch whoever had found their location.  
  
*Yugi*  
  
Yugi moved slowly in the interminable darkness. Peering through the lush bushes he could tell that there was a military camp here. 'But is it our military or the other side?' he wondered. He crouched and waited for movement to see which side this camp was on.  
  
Now at that same time, Honda who was eager to get back to this war slipped out of his tent armed with his gun and decided to take a small walk around the camp and surrounding jungles.  
  
Sensing the movement, Yugi tensed. He aimed carefully. 'Someone must've heard me sneaking around out here!' he thought. Shaking, he clicked the gun into position though he had a sinking feeling he wouldn't be able to use it. Honda heard the click. He dashed over to where Yugi was then jumped on him assuming him to be one of the enemy.  
  
Yugi screamed and attempted to fight off his assailant; but it was to no avail, this guy was too strong and in all the confusion, one single shot rang out, echoed, and then silenced. The grip around him loosened, and a small thump was heard as the limp body hit the soft soil. His heart racing, Yugi began to panic. 'Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god.' He groped around in the dark until he found the place he was looking for, the man's neck. No pulse. 'Oh no..' he thought entering a state of hysteria. Noticing, the man had a flashlight attached to his belt, Yugi grabbed it a flicked it on.  
  
The sight before him was something he had wished he'd never seen. Blood was everywhere, including all over him. But it was not only the blood that was disturbing but who the blood belonged to that shocked him into a complete state of panic, hysteria, and guilt. He covered his mouth, his eyes growing large. Quickly he shut the light off at the sight of his friend Honda.  
  
"I killed him!" he screamed as he turned and bolted from the sight. "WHAT IS HAPPENING TO ME?!" Once he was sufficiently far from the sight of Honda, Yugi once again broke down into confused, wracking sobs. Gripping his head, he lay in a ball in the darkness. "Why.Why did he have to die? Why did I have to kill him?! I don't' understand, this isn't right." he said aloud between sobs and screams. Yugi lay there weeping for who knows long until he eventually passed out from the emotional trauma.  
  
*Marik, Jounouchi, Seto*  
  
Jou sat up in the darkness. Something had woken him up.a sound of some kind, but he couldn't really remember. 'Oh well...it was probably just Kaiba snoring.Wait, Kaiba is always awake by now, maybe he heard whatever it was too.' Getting stiffly out of his cot, he ran smack into Seto as he was running into the tent. "God, don't' you EVER watch where you're going?!" Seto snapped angrily. "C'mon, get out here, now there's something YOU need to see!" Practically dragging Jou, he led him outside to a small spot just outside the camp.  
  
Jou gasped at what he saw next. "H-Honda? B-Buddy?" he stuttered. He bent down to check for some kind of pulse when Seto put a hand on him  
  
"Don't bother, I already checked, he's been dead a few hours." Jou nodded numbly, maybe this was just a bad dream. "But look here." Seto shined a light on something just to the right of Honda's mutilated body. "Foot prints..bloody foot prints. They're from whoever killed him." Jou's anger flared.  
  
"Well let's go out there, find whoever did it, and kill 'em!" Jou screamed.  
  
"We'll have to get permission from Marik or the Lieutenant if we want to go." Seto explained calmly.  
  
"I don't give a fuck, god damnit, I'm goin' out dere.." Jou said feeling extremely upset.  
  
"Fine, but if we get in trouble for this, I will kill you." Seto growled lowly.  
  
"Yea, yea, C'mon let's get goin', We gotta get dis guy!" Jou dashed off with the light following the prints. Seto, not wanting to be left in the dark, followed Jou quickly. But little did they know what surprise awaited them at the end of the bloody trail...  
  
END CHAPTER EIGHT  
  
A/N: Well.that was morbid. Review and 9 will be up sooner then this one was. 


	9. The Weeping Assasin

A/N: Good GOD I am sorry. I didn't update as soon as usual because A - I received very few reviews and B - there simply wasn't time. This chapter will be..strange. It does not follow the pattern, it continues on with Seto, Jou, and Yugi is added a few paragraphs in.  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Stumbling through the light of pre-dawn, drunk with rage, Jounouchi fell a third time in fifteen feet. Struggling to stand, Seto grabbed his shirt collar and whispered harshly in his face, "Stop acting like such an idiot. Slow DOWN, if you keep going like this, even if we DO find the guy, he'll hear us and make a run for it! We can't afford any of your stupid mistakes now calm DOWN before you get us both killed!"  
  
Seto roughly released his grip, took the flashlight in his hands and quietly lead the rest of the search. The light was increasing, but there was still nowhere near enough light to see. The blood on the footprint could no longer be seen, however there was still a very clear path. It was apparent that whoever it was had been all to eager to get away.  
  
He stopped abruptly, his sensitive ears picking up a faint sound. Jou, who hadn't been watching where they were going, ran smack into Kaiba's back. "Ah, watch it, will ya?!" Jou yelled. Seto gritted his teeth.  
  
"Quiet you imbecile, LISTEN!" Both of them stood completely silently and listened. 'Cryin.someone out dere is cryin!' Jou deducted from the sounds he heard. Seto took a step forward but Jou stopped him. "No..let ME take 'em." he said. Seto followed but from a great distance. He could just barley see Jou approaching a small, shacking lump lying on the jungle floor.  
  
Katsuya shined the light on the tiny man's face.he wanted to know his friend's murderer before he blow his head off. He let out a small gasp, then whispered hoarsely, "Y..Yu...YUG?!" he yelled. Seto wasn't really sure what to think. 'Well this is certainly unexpected.' he thought to himself.  
  
Yugi looked up, his face tear stricken, his eyes completely red and bloodshot. "J-Jounouchi?!" Shakily he stood, so glad to see a friend that he ceased his weeping and took a step forward towards Jounouchi. But Jounouchi took a step backwards. "Y-You killed Honda." he slowly raised one finger and pointed it at Yugi and screamed. "YOU KILLED HONDA!!!"  
  
Yugi took about FIVE steps backwards at Jou's reaction. He could feel the tears forming again. "P-P-Please, Jounouchi, let me explain." He tearfully recounted how he had run away with Ryou's instruction, how he was lost, how he found the camp, Honda attacking him, and that one single gunshot that brought his entire world crashing down. Yugi sat down again and said through tears, "It's the ONLY shot I fired outside basic training.only one..and it wasn't even intentional.that one shot killed my friend." he stopped his speech and began to sob violently. "IT'S THE LAST THING I EVER WANTED TO DO!!!" he continued sobbing.  
  
Jounouchi Katsuya had no idea what to do or say. And on this rare occasion, neither did Kaiba. 'I've never killed someone who actually ment something to me before.' he thought. 'I can't believe this but I pity the child. I knew he wouldn't make it but I didn't think he would go out so slowly or painfully.perhaps I can hasten his fall from his moral high- point.' Slowly, he made his silent way closer to Yugi and Jounouchi.  
  
"Yugi.just.just come wit me, we'll figure sometin out. Get ya back inta da army, heal your wounds wit dis whole accident ting.it'll be ok again eventually Yugi." He knelt down and put one hand on Yugi's shoulder. "Dis wasn't your fault Yug." He said firmly. But Yugi could only shake his head.  
  
"I can't be ok anymore Jounouchi. This hurts too badly, I can hardly stand up I'm so weak. And what about the others? What will they do if they find out that I...that I..." he stopped himself from saying anything more. He looks into Jou's eyes, it was strange seeing them look so black from the lack of light. "I can't go on like this. Help me make it pass Jou." he sighed weakly, and laid down. It was only then that he realized Yugi was bleeding, he had bashed himself up very badly running away from the campsite.  
  
"I-I can't do that. Look, Yug, please just come wit me.I promise you, this'll pass." But Yugi just shook his head.  
  
"Please Jou, just kill me, put me out of this self created misery." he started crying again.  
  
"I can't do dat Yug." Jou stated.  
  
"I can." Said a familiar voice from behind them. Two shots rang out and Jou dove to the ground having no idea where they were coming from. After a few minuets, Jou stood up again. Yugi had ceased his crying. "Yug?" he said as he poked him. His body moved limply. "What da?" Jou hand felt wet. He shined the light on himself finding his hands covered in a deep, red liquid. "Blood?" he questioned. He shined the light on Yugi finding two holes in his chest, the liquid flowing freely from them. Fumbling, Jou pressed two fingers to Yugi's neck, there was no pulse.  
  
Jounouchi let out an anguished cry and fell to his knees before his best friend, and tear rolling down his face. Suddenly he felt rage pulse through him. 'Kaiba. KILL Kaiba.' Were his first thoughts, he seemed incapable of complete sentences he was so raged. He looked around, Kaiba was nowhere to be seen.  
  
A bright flash of light emitted from Yugi's pocket as yami appeared by his side. "Y-Yami?" Jou asked feeling extremely confused. "How are you here? The puzzle was disassembled YEARS ago."  
  
Yami silently held up the central piece of the puzzle, with the Eye of Ra on it. Carefully, he removed Yugi's deck from his pocket and handed it Jou. Yami gently lifted Yugi's battered form and let silent tears roll down his cold face. Slowly, he kissed Yugi's limp and lifeless form. Finally, the sun peeked through the trees. Yami carried Yugi with him and turned his face towards the tiny ray of sun. Both of their forms disappeared leaving Jou kneeling on the ground with bloody hands and a face scarred by tears.  
  
END CHAPTER NINE 


	10. Home Is An Illusion Now

A/N: Does anyone else hate school as much has I do? -_-; By the way, I don't own The Doors or their songs ((OBIVIOUSLY.))  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Ryou stalked his prey silently. He saw the figure jogging just barley ahead of him. They moved away from the wreckage that was one Ryou's camp. 'Even though it's only his shadow.there is something familiar about him.' he thought to himself. Finally, he was close enough to launch an attack.  
  
Rather then let the gun ring out and take a chance of attracting the attention of other enemy officers, Ryou jumped onto the man of equal size as the two of them rolled on the ground. Ryou landed on top and looked into the same pair of eyes that had been so carefully observing Yugi about one week before.  
  
The dark, familiar eyes smiled up at him in an amused fashion. The man smirked as a tiny amount of sun fell onto his face revealing his identity. The yin and yang lay there for a moment, the yang temporarily shocked by the yin's mysterious reappearance.  
  
"S-Spirit?" Ryou asked in a confused tone as he stared into the eyes of the ancient tomb robber.  
  
"Took you a moment there." he said, pushing Ryou off him, standing up, and brushing himself off. "I knew I could get you away from there easily, you're all to predictable Ryou." he said. Though Ryou was a very patient, easy going person, the war had him high strung and for obvious reasons. A small amount of anger flashed in his usually docile eyes. The spirit smirked. "Calm yourself Ryou, I see your quick to temper these days. Oh well, I suggest you check on your little friend Yugi. You're closer then you think Ryou, run west and move quickly."  
  
The spirit turned to leave but paused, faced Ryou once more and said, "And when I said quickly I ment it. You need to stop Jounouchi from blowing Kaiba's head off." and with that, his image faded as he became one with the rising sun.  
  
*~Jounouchi, Seto, Marik~*  
  
Jounouchi was about to burst into the tent, where he knew Kaiba would be. He had been ready to smash his head in or blow it off, depending on which instinct took over first. But he heard something, Kaiba was singing an old, familiar, and haunting tune.  
  
"This is the end, Beautiful friend  
  
This is the end, My only friend, the end  
  
Of our elaborate plans, the end  
  
Of everything that stands, the end  
  
No safety or surprise, the end  
  
I'll never look into your eyes...again  
  
Can you picture what will be, So limitless and free  
  
Desperately in need...of some...stranger's hand  
  
In a...desperate land  
  
Lost in a Roman...wilderness of pain  
  
And all the children are insane, All the children are insane  
  
Waiting for the summer rain, yeah  
  
There's danger on the edge of town  
  
Ride the King's highway, baby  
  
Weird scenes inside the gold mine  
  
Ride the highway west, baby  
  
Ride the snake, ride the snake  
  
To the lake, the ancient lake, baby  
  
The snake is long, seven miles  
  
Ride the snake...he's old, and his skin is cold  
  
The west is the best, The west is the best  
  
Get here, and we'll do the rest  
  
The blue bus is callin' us, The blue bus is callin' us  
  
Driver, where you taken' us  
  
The killer awoke before dawn, he put his boots on  
  
He took a face from the ancient gallery  
  
And he walked on down the hall  
  
He went into the room where his sister lived, and...then he  
  
Paid a visit to his brother, and then he  
  
He walked on down the hall, and  
  
And he came to a door...and he looked inside  
  
Father, yes son, I want to kill you  
  
Mother...I want to...*screams*  
  
C'mon baby, take a chance with us  
  
And meet me at the back of the blue bus  
  
Doin' a blue rock, On a blue bus  
  
Doin' a blue rock, C'mon, yeah  
  
Kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill  
  
This is the end, Beautiful friend  
  
This is the end, My only friend, the end  
  
It hurts to set you free  
  
But you'll never follow me  
  
The end of laughter and soft lies  
  
The end of nights we tried to die  
  
This is the end."  
  
'What the fuck?' Jou thought to himself. For thing, Kaiba never sang.as far as he knew at least. For another why that song? 'It's Yugi, it's gotta be.' Jou thought slowly. 'I won't kill him just yet, I want to know why he did it now.' Slowly, he entered the tent and was welcomed by the woefully delirious Seto.  
  
"Not going to kill me just yet, are you?" he said smirking. But this was not the "normal" smirk, something was...wrong.  
  
"Kaiba.why were ya singing dat song?" Jou inquired tentatively.  
  
"Even you must know it by now.this IS the end, for all of us." That same low and cold laugh that escaped his throat in their discussion weeks ago in the early morning reemerged once more.((A/N: See chapter 7)). "Think about it, this war...it's the end of all of us. Your dead inside, I can tell just by looking at you. Yugi ment a lot to you he was your best friend, perhaps I didn't realize I was killing two people when I did it." Seto paused and looked into Jou's eyes.  
  
"Yugi was suffering, he wouldn't have made it. Not with that guilt weighing on him, his conscious is too powerful. You'll get over it though...someday you will realize I was doing him a favor Katsuya." Seto continued staring him in the eye, sapphire orbs pouring out thoughts of a soul stained with red. But the honey eyes simply deflect the message from the blue, possibly not understanding or possibly not WANTING to understand. Kaiba smirked. "You don't get it, do you? You will though, maybe someday.Katsuya."  
  
Jou dropped his gun to the floor. 'He used my name.' he thought seemingly disconnected from his own mind. The honey eyes rose upward to meet the gaze of the blue and at last open their doors accepting and understanding what the blue had told them. Jounouchi fell numbly to the floor and wept for the first time in years. His soul accepted the horrible facts that Seto Kaiba had known and had suffered all this time. Non of them would come out the same, whether by their own death or through the death of others, no one would come out totally unscarred.  
  
"C'mon, Katsuya, stand up." Kaiba knew where the other man's thought were leading, he desired death more the anything else right now and Seto refused to have soul stained with more blood. "You need to get out of here alive. If you won't do it for your own good, do it for Yugi. Do it for whatever you've got left, it can't all be gone." He said as he reached out his hand and helped Katsuya to stand up.  
  
'I never thought I would see the day that Seto Kaiba was the one helping me up.' Jou thought. Just then, Ryou dove into the tent and was in slight awe of the sight before him. It's not everyday you see a weeping Jounouchi leaning on Seto Kaiba emotionally and physically for support. "Um." Ryou said as he blinked. "Can someone fill me in on whatever has happened with Yugi?" Jounouchi shook his head no. Kaiba walked up to him as he regained his ice like demeanor.  
  
"Follow me." And he lead Ryou outside. He proceeded to explain all that had happened with Yugi, Yami's mysterious entrance and exit with Yugi, and when they were back at camp, Ryou explained how he had managed to meet up with them. Of course, Seto simply shook his head and brushed the explanation off; he had slightly more faith in the Millennium Items currently though his opinion hadn't changed all that much.  
  
"We need to tell Marik." Seto said. Suddenly, Jou emerged from the tent, walked behind some trees, and came back with Honda's dog tag in his hands.  
  
"Yea.we do need to tell Marik....about everything." Jou stated. Ryou and Seto nodded as they approached his temporary living quarters.  
  
Once again, they explained everything. The accidental death of Honda, Yugi, Yami, and anything else that could be related to the situation. "Where do you suppose yami took Yugi?" Ryou asked Marik. Marik just shrugged.  
  
"You know I don't know Ryou. Who knows? Someplace better then this, where the two of them can be happy surely.." He said trailing off distantly. "There has been news from the general." He pulled out a letter. "The war is over, our country won....we'll be able to go home in a little while." He said.  
  
But everyone was too numb to be able to take in the good news. What was go do about it? They had already suffered, even if it was over, it didn't matter. And what was waiting for each of them at home? Seto Kaiba had no company, an overly large, lonely house, detectives and curious reporters, and the news of whether his brother's death had been suicide or homicide. Not all that welcoming.  
  
Jounouchi had literally nothing. No house, his father was dead now and his sister was back with their mother. He had no money, he left it all behind to fight in this war that was, in the end, what killed him.  
  
Ryou had lost nothing physically. But his sweet, almost child like innocence was gone. Witnessing endless deaths and feeling the pain of the people surrounding him, he knew now what extent fate can take things too. It can and is taken too far too often.  
  
Marik had lost just as much as anyone there. Faith, friends, but he had gained knowledge. Knowledge of things he didn't want. Knowledge of what war can do, what death does. Not to those who are killed, not only them, but the toll it takes on anyone and everyone who was ever close to them.  
  
Marik and Ryou had been dragged unwillingly to this place. Seto and Jou had come to escape whatever of their bloody pasts still lingered to torture them. In the end however, it seemed that even this place of torment began looking good compared to reality. Everyone knew they had to go back, but in this place the pain seemed like a dream almost, why return to the real pain? Why even go on trying? Home was a far off prospect, for this group, this war WAS home....  
  
"We oughtta hold some kinda...memorial or sometin." Jou said as he stared at Honda's dog tag in his palm. Ryou removed Yugi's from his jacket pocket and handed it to Jou. The two looked at each other in a silent sort of understanding.  
  
Kaiba stood up and walked away and as he left, they heard him sing faintly, "This is the end...." as the sound of his low, solemn voice faded.  
  
END CHAPTER TEN  
  
A/N: this is NOT the ending chapter. There's still a lot of stuff I want to do, so please stick around! 


	11. Free At Last, Free At Last

A/N: Hot damn, I'm still alive. Sorry for the slump, please review, this is the last chapter unless I decide to add something. Thank you to all reviewers!  
  
Dog Tags  
  
Suddenly Seto dove back into the tent and landed with a thud on the dirt floor. He had the wind knocked out of him and temporarily unable to breathe, he gestured toward the tent flap.  
  
Ryou almost jumped out side, eager to see what had shocked Seto so much when suddenly they heard a muffled scream. Oh yes, the war WAS indeed officially over, but not everyone knew yet. Enemy troops had entered the area. Seto had gone by unnoticed but Ryou was not so lucky.  
  
No they did not kill him, they did worse. They took him with them as a prisoner. Seto and Jou poked the barrels of their guns out of the tent and fired but they knew the assailants were long gone. Marik however went running hysterically out of then tent trying to chase after them, though it would be impossible to find them again.  
  
Jounouchi dove after Marik and pulled him down by the legs. Marik immediately began struggling and flailing about. "What the hell do you think you're doing?! Let go of me, we've got to save him!!!" Seto flipped Marik over and, with Jou's help, pinned him to the ground.  
  
"Marik, listen ta me, we can't get 'em back, he's GONE!" Jou tried to explain calmly. However it was difficult to explain to someone that one your friends had just walked out of your life forever. It hurt Jou to say such a thing but he knew the truth could not be denied any longer. Honda, Yugi, and Ryou were gone. Forever.  
  
"Look, Marik, you have to calm down. He's gone and you fighting us is NOT going to help bring him back!" Seto said more firmly then Jou had. Marik stopped fighting. Seto and Jou let go of him as he stood up and dusted himself off. Sighing sadly, he looked up at both of them.  
  
"I had hoped that Yugi and Honda would be the end of the suffering. But no, I guess it didn't work out that way, did it? I just don't understand why so much needs to be taken for this stupid war...I don't even care about it, Ra damnit!" he yelled towards the sky. As Marik made his dramatic speech, Seto had seen something glisten on the floor. He picked it up and realized it was Ryou's tag. 'The enemy soldiers must've grabbed hold of the chain and it broke off.' Seto analyzed as he stared at the cold sheet of metal in his hands. He touched Marik's shoulder. "Here." He said.  
  
Marik looked at Seto giving him a blank stare unknowing of how to react. He simply put it in his pocket and nodded numbly. "There will be a few helicopters arriving to take us home in about an hour. I'll have to tell whoever is in-charge about the last P.O.W. of this war.." he said in reference to Ryou.  
  
*about two months later - Location: Seto's home in Manhattan*  
  
The flag pole in the courtyard outside Seto Kaiba's house held two flags that day. The first was, of course, the American - one that once flown over the Capital. But below that was the reason why Katsuya Jounouchi and Marik Ishtar had joined him that day. It was a black and white flag. The image of a man with his head bowed, being lead by a chain around his neck with a tower in the background. Above this image was:  
  
P.O.W.*M.I.A  
  
And below:  
  
You Are Not Forgotten  
  
Within the house, a conversation of past events unfolds. "Can you believe it's only been two since months since they've been..gone?" Jou asked aloud to no one in particular. Seto ignored the question, and Marik just made a sort of "Mmmm." sound.  
  
"Are all of you ready?" Seto asked noticing that the awkward silence was beginning to become less then tolerable. The other two men nodded their heads and soon the three of them were on their way to the Brooklyn Bridge.  
  
Marik walked up to the edge first. He had been waiting to let go of those horrible memories for the two months they had been home. Other then the losses of Yugi, Honda, and Ryou he had seen more blood then anyone should have too. Carefully, he pulled his and Ryou's dog tags out of his pocket and ceremoniously dropped them into the river below. He stepped back and Jounouchi took his place.  
  
Jounouchi held four tags - his own, his father's, Honda's, and Yugi's. He knew he had to let them go. It would be hard for him to part with the only memory of his friends and his father. However it had to be done, letting go was the only way for him to live on after this. Besides, Yugi would rather have Jou be happy without him then living miserably clinging onto his faded memory, right? Katsuya Jounouchi released the memories of his jaded past ready to move on. The past had taught him all it could and into the future he would take with him the lessons learned, not the black memories. For sheets of metal slowly floated to the bottom of the river. Katsuya stepped away from the edge.  
  
It was Seto's turn, but something momentarily held him back. "Marik, Katsuya..." ever since that one day, Seto had begun calling Jounouchi by his first name. Seto tilted his head toward the black limo behind them. "Tell the driver to take you back to my house, I'll be there soon." He said. The two of them nodded, understanding that he needed to be alone, and stepped into the limo. Seto observed as it sped away back in the direction of Manhattan. He stepped up the edge of the bridge.  
  
Seto now knew the truth, Mokuba had been murdered. He still felt guilty for it, if only he had bee not home instead of working overtime at his idiotic company! Silently he cursed himself. 'I am sorry I failed you little brother.' he thought with tears in his eyes. 'You know I would've protected you if I had only been there. But I wasn't there, I was too concerned with work to worry about the only thing that really ment anything to me anymore. I'm sorry for being such a blind and selfish fool little brother.' Tears were now flowing freely down his face.  
  
'Dad, I hope that I have done something in this lifetime to make you proud though I honestly can't think of anything. I'm sorry to you too, but I know now that I'm ready to let go of your part in the wars of this world.' He dropped his father's tag into the river, adding it the pile of broken memories engraved on small sheets of metal on the bottom of the body of water. Seto stood on the very top of the rail gazing into the water of the huge river below him. He was confident he would not fall, his balance had always been perfect.  
  
'However, I think I'll hold onto this.' he thought referring to his own dog tag which still rested around his neck. 'I don't think I'm ready to let go of it all just yet, I need more time.' He spread his arms wide, closed his eyes and relaxed as a light breeze hit his still form. This little "ceremony" had been a helpful way of letting go of some painful memories. Seto was ready climb down and take a cab home when suddenly a bicyclist came whizzing by.  
  
The handlebar knocked his ankle throwing him forward. It was a long fall into that deep and dark water. However for some reason, Seto had no problem with himself falling into oblivion. Maybe he wasn't able to let go and move on because there was no reason for too. The cyclist did not notice him fall, no one did. Seto Kaiba died upon impact with the water. His cold, still form floated down slowly and reached the bottom of the dark, cold, interminable water. He landed amongst the pile of dog tags, he landed in the freed memories and now he too was free. His soul left his now useless body, the body, which remained surrounded by the cold metal that represented all the blood, pain, broken and shattered memories created by the war.  
  
But to Seto Kaiba, the temporary suffering was a cheap price for the happiness he now had. Now he resided in a place of peace with Yugi, Honda, Ryou (who had joined all of them soon after being taken prisoner), his father, and his little brother Mokuba. Marik and Jou never knew what happened to Seto, no one did. They assumed he had run away from the world and had gone into hiding. Every so often the two of them visited the spot where they had set free their memories. Little did they know that a part of Seto was there too, because now, he too, was free.  
  
END CHAPTER ELEVEN  
  
A/N: I hope You have enjoyed this, thank you to anyone who read this. Good- bye, friends. 


	12. Desensitization A New Story

Note: I have written a separate story about Dog Tags. It is a bunch of thoughts after the war from Jounouchi's point of view. If you liked Dog Tags, read it. It's very short, only two pages long. Since as a rule, you cannot post a chapter that is only an author's note, I will give you the first line of this new story. It one chapter long as it is called Desensitization. Here is the first line.  
  
Desensitization...  
  
Sometimes I can't help but cry when teardrops meet on the streets of goodbye.  
  
http:www.fanfiction.net/read.php?storyid=1886445 


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